1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus and an image processing method for use in image diagnosis of lesion parts in blood vessels.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, various techniques have been developed for image processing apparatuses that are designed for image diagnosis of lesion parts in blood vessels, particularly lesion parts in coronary artery. These techniques include, for example, (1) extraction of images of the heart or the coronary artery (see, for example, Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2004-230086 and Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2006-246941); (2) labeling and classification of the branches of the coronary artery (see, for example, Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2004-283373); (3) detection and display of constricted parts (see, for example, Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2004-283373, Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2005-198708, Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2006-167287, Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2006-246941, Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2008-67991, Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2008-125616, and Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2008-125736); and (4) assistance in preparing clinical reports and clinical charts.
The technique (1), i.e., extracting images of the coronary artery, is no more than extracting the entire image of the object of interest. The technique (2), i.e., labeling, is indeed useful in automating the labeling annotation of the respective blood-vessel branches. However, this technique inevitably labels the blood-vessel branches of non-interest, too. The technique therefore requires a manual edition. The technique (3), i.e., detection and display of the constricted part, cannot accomplish the display of the clinical reports or clinical charts about the constriction of a blood vessel. The technique (4), i.e., assistance in preparing the clinical reports and clinical charts, needs manual selection of the blood vessel of interest or the lesion part (mainly, the constricted part) and manual setting of various conditions such as viewing direction and label positions. Consequently, it requires cumbersome operations to prepare clinical reports and clinical charts.